Attorney Michael Avenatti said Monday that he has obtained a second video allegedly showing singer R. Kelly sexually assaulting a minor and that he plans to provide it to prosecutors.
Kelly, whose given name is Robert Kelly, surrendered to law enforcement officials in Chicago last week after being charged with 10 counts of criminal sexual abuse.
“The tape was recently uncovered in connection with our ongoing nationwide investigation on behalf of victims,” Avenatti, widely known as the high-profile lawyer representing Stormy Daniels, tweeted. “Justice must be done.”
Avenatti said on Feb. 14 that he had turned over to Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx a VHS tape from the late 1990s that allegedly shows Kelly sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
CNN, which viewed that video, said it appears to show Kelly engaged in multiple sex acts with a girl who repeatedly refers to what she calls her “14-year-old” body parts.
CNN’s description of the video suggests the girl appeared to be actively participating in the sexual acts. Nevertheless, the incident may amount to sexual assault or statutory rape if the girl was 14 at the time. The age of legal consent in Illinois is 17.
The second tape also shows R. Kelly allegedly sexually assaulting a girl and has multiple references to her “14-year-old” genitalia, Avenatti said Tuesday.
It’s unclear whether the second video features the same girl as the first or any of the women Chicago authorities have accused Kelly of assaulting. Neither Avenatti nor Kelly’s attorney, Steve Greenberg, immediately responded to HuffPost’s requests for comment.
Kelly, who has been accused of sexually abusing minors for decades, has vehemently denied any wrongdoing. He was indicted in 2002 on 13 counts of child pornography but was acquitted in 2008.
Avenatti said Tuesday that his team has “substantial evidence” indicating Kelly purposely hid the second tape from prosecutors during his 2008 trial. He claims Kelly obstructed justice by paying witnesses to destroy copies of the tape prior to the trial.
Sexual abuse allegations against Kelly have been revived with the 2017 publication of an explosive BuzzFeed report that alleged Kelly operated an abusive sex cult. In January, Lifetime debuted the six-part docuseries “Surviving R. Kelly,” in which several women were interviewed and said the musician abused them.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office on Friday announced Kelly had been charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving four victims it identified as H.W., R.L., L.C. and J.P. All but the first individual were under 17 during the alleged incidents, which occurred between 1998 and 2010.
Kelly surrendered Friday evening. A judge on Saturday set his bond at $1 million, ordered him to surrender his passport and prohibited him to have contact with anyone under 18.
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office confirmed for HuffPost that the “Ignition” singer posted the $100,000 needed to make bail on Monday and was released from jail that evening. He did not immediately post the minimum bond amount because he “really doesn’t have any money at this point” because of “mismanagement” of his finances, Greenberg told reporters Saturday.
Kelly pleaded not guilty to the charges on Monday. His next court date is scheduled for March 22.
This story has been updated to include R. Kelly’s release from jail on bond and information about the second tape.